Why We Did This Report
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Inspector General conducted an audit of the EPA’s reporting of fiscal year 2022 financial and award data in USAspending.gov. During that audit, we identified grant information that was inexplicably changed in the EPA’s grants management system—called the Next Generation Grants System, or NGGS—raising concerns about the overall integrity of the system.
Summary of Findings
During our audit follow-up, we could not determine a valid reason for the changes. EPA grant staff were also not able to explain why the changes were made. The NGGS does not have adequate controls, such as requiring justifications or approval for changes, to prevent or detect improper changes to grant information. If the EPA cannot rely on the information in the NGGS, its ability to effectively administer and oversee its grants portfolio—which, as of the fall of 2024, totaled 8,713 grants with a value of more than $73 billion—is hampered. Furthermore, inadequate controls within the NGGS increase the EPA’s susceptibility to fraud. Improper changes could also impact the other EPA systems that the NGGS connects with.